Posts Tagged ‘What Are The Odds…’

“NEXT TIME I BRING YOU A CAN OF CORN, MR. HOSMER,…. BRING A CAN OPENER!”

In fairness to Eric Hosmer, in spite of its rarity, it was the sort of thing that gets to happen to almost everyone who plays the game long enough, in one form or another. The game of baseball is the speed lane to humility through personal kinds of embarrassment on the field. And for most of us, our player memories do not extend far beyond the sandlot and Little League fields of early life. In Hosmer’s case yesterday, it looked as though he either over committed on how far to run in or lost the ball in those strangely placed arc lights. It certainly was no depiction of his normally superior abilities.

It was just bigger than everyday baseball life.

What are the odds that any of us will ever see that game-deciding play again in our lifetime – let alone, see it at all? My last and only memory of it goes back to my original sandlot baseball Pecan Park Eagle days – and we played loose as a goose with the rules in those days. – That is to say, as kids, we knew enough not to change any rules that might violate the integrity of the game. We never used “designated hitters” – and we sure didn’t place freebie runners at second base to help shorten extra inning games.

Pardon this quick fugue of thought. – Maybe San Diego first baseman Eric Hosmer was simply secretly test-driving a rule change for Commissioner Manfred. i.e., “Let’s see what happens in extra innings in these situations with two outs: Place a freebie runner at second. Then instruct the infielders and pitcher that they are required to let the first infield pop fly to fall safe once – just to see if that moves the game to a faster finish. If that does not occur to score a run, the freebie runner will have to await a legitimate play if he is to score.”

But seriously, folks….

We’ve never seen that game-ending in over seven decades of playing and watching baseball. What are the odds against us ever seeing it again? – And what are the odds against it ever happening again in all our collective short and long remaining life spans?

What a night Saturday, April 7, 2018 at Minute Maid Park turned out to be!

********************

Addendum: This e-mail from legendary Pittsburgh Pirate game official scorer Bill Christine deserved additional status here. Christine covers a whole point we ignored in our moment of royal “aweness”. It now comes your way in Bill Christine’s e-mail subject title message to me:

Don’t shoot the official scorer in Houston; he’s doing the best he can: With two outs and the winning run on base Saturday between Houston and San Diego, the Houston batter hit a high pop fly that first baseman Hosmer of San Diego overran. The ball dropped several feet behind Hosmer and the winning run scored. The batter was credited with a hit and an RBI, the pitcher charged with an unearned run.

This is one of the rules of scoring: “NOTE (2) It is not necessary that the fielder touch the ball to be charged with an error. If a ground ball goes through a fielder’s legs or a pop fly falls untouched and in the scorer’s judgment the fielder could have handled the ball with ordinary effort, an error shall be charged.”

So why wasn’t Hosmer charged with an error and the run ruled unearned? I’d like to hear the official scorer’s explanation.

There have been some bad official-scoring decisions over the years. I even committed a few myself. But this is the worst of all-time.